Lovell House
- Style
- International Style
- City
- Los Angeles, CA
Architect Richard Neutra designed the Lovell House, also called the Lovell Health House, between 1927 and 1929 for physician and naturopath Philip Lovell at 4616 Dundee Drive in Los Feliz. Built in the International Style, it is considered a major monument in architectural history and a turning point in Neutra's career.
the building
First steel-frame house. The Lovell House is often described as the first steel-frame house built in the United States, along with an early use of sprayed-on concrete, or gunite. No residential contractor would touch the unfamiliar industrial materials, so Neutra himself served as contractor, drawing on experience with steel construction from his earlier work at the Chicago firm Holabird & Roche.
A rivalry with Schindler. Philip Lovell had already commissioned architect Rudolf Schindler to design the landmark Lovell Beach House in 1926. Neutra and Schindler had been contemporaries in Europe and lived together in Los Angeles, making the second Lovell commission a pointed continuation of that relationship.
the style
The Lovell House is a foundational International Style building in the United States, praised publicly by Lovell himself and built on the era's newest industrial materials rather than any historical reference.
More on International Stylethe architect
Richard Neutra had worked with steel construction at the Chicago firm Holabird & Roche before designing the Lovell House, and the commission became a turning point in his career, establishing him as a leading modernist in Los Angeles.
significance
The Lovell House carries dual designation as Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #123 (designated March 20, 1974) and an individual listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
nearby
- Ennis - Brown House
- Hlaffer-Courcier Residence
- McTernan Residence
- Griffith Observatory
- Midtown School
- Sowden house